To interfere or not to interfere

[shellynjason]

Ok so I bought my first corals last Saturday. Based on the fact I have new lighting I tried to put more coral on the sand bed or to the sides of the tank with somewhat less light. I have a 60x18-26 with ATI T5 6x54.

I have a mix of 12 different types of coral - soft ( xenia,yellow polyps, gsp) , lps (candy cane, frogspawn, LT plate, blasto) and even thre sps (purple monti, blue acrop and a birdsnest).

Anyway - my dilemma is that I keep getting to urge to 'move' the coral based on what I read on the forums (proper placement) and what I 'think' they want. I already moved the three sps to the top of the rocks (instead of on sandbed).

Who often do people move their coral (not just for the heck of it of course but to give the coral the best location) and how can you 'tell' that they need to be moved. Or do you just let them roam and figure it out on their own (seems my teal mushrooms moved on their own)? And I swear the long tentacle plate is expanding or moving toward a shady area by the rocks. Hard to get pictures because of this blue light.

I am trying to keep my hands out but it's hard.

 

[cdness]

I typically see what the coral does in the area it is placed in. I try not to move them much, but sometimes it is needed. Typically I say if you move a coral, give it 2 - 3 weeks to get used to the area before moving it again. This is of course unless it is in the process of immediate recession as soon as you moved it... Try to let them be and get used to their spots before interfering too much.

 

[Mufasa31]

I have the SunLight 6 bulb fixture on a 90.

For SPS, I generally mount them high in the tank right away.

I keep both softies and LPS bottom to middle.

I find that i get much better SPS growth they are mounted permanently.

 

[shellynjason]

Ok I will try to let them be for a few weeks. Aside from the sps I have the rest of the sandbed to adjust to the lights and so will definately need to put them in a permanant spot of the rocks eventually. Getting impatient I guess.

All the coral look fine so far (only 5 days in) , except one 'neon candy cane' just barely has a spot of neon green peaking out and I have this two head frag in the sandbed glued on a rock at the far end of the tank with the least intense light but not shaded.

 

[florida reef]

Personally, I will place my corals in the general area(high, medium, or low) but focus more on aesthetics than the perfect spot. IMO the corals will be fine as long as you place the sps high, lps and softies medium to low depending on the type. Acclimating them to the light is a good idea...you can even place them and cut your photo period, then gradually increase until you are back to your full schedule.

 

[shellynjason]

I just made a spreadsheet of my corals which includes a) placement b) feeding c) chemical range d) flow needs e) light needs f) aggression ... This will help me finalize the permanent placement. I don't want to keep to much on the sand bed in case I get another diamond goby (my last one lasted a day before I found it on the floor).